Drop cloth holder

ABSTRACT

The drop cloth holder is formed of spring steel and has a shape approximating an inverted &#39;&#39;&#39;&#39;J&#39;&#39;&#39;&#39;. The longer leg is arched toward the shorter leg and acts as a leaf spring. The lower end of the longer leg is adapted for insertion between a baseboard and a wall thereby tensioning the leg to tightly hold a drop cloth between it and the wall.

United States Patent 191 '11 11 3,872,549 Elyea 1 Mar. 25, 1975 [5 DROP CLOTH HOLDER 2,217.574 10/1940 Tinnerman 24/73 MF x 2,666,968 l/1954 Bedford. Jr 24/73 MF X [76] Inventor challes M-ElYea1BOX 2,889,804 6/1959 Dim e161. 118/504 Belvldere- 72523 3,039,453 6/1962 Kormuth 118/505 22 Filed: Nov 29 973 3,380,435 4/1968 Wagner 118/505 [2H App! 419383 Primary Examiner-Morris Kaplan [52] US. C|......'.... 24/73 B, 24/73 MF, 118/505 57 ABSTRACT [51] Int. Cl A44b 21/00, B05b 15/04 [58] Field Of Search 118/504, 301, 505, 506; The drop Cloth holder 15 formed P' Steel and 117/38; 51/310; 24/73 B 73 PC 73 AS 73 has a shape approximating an inverted .l". The longer AC, '73 D 73 p 73 MF;248/3 1 C leg 18 arched toward the shorter leg and acts 38 a leaf spring. The lower end of the longer leg is adapted for [56] References Cited insertion between a baseboard and a wall thereby ten- UNITED STATES PATENTS sioning the leg to tightly hold a drop cloth between it a (1 th 1 ll. 1.376,?53 5/1921 Febrey 24/73 B X n e wa 1,563,889 12/1925 Zastrow 118/505 3 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTEI] HARZ 5 I975 1 DROP CLOTH HOLDER BACKGROUND The invention pertains generally to painters implements of the type which afford protection against the dripping or splattering of paint.

When a wall or ceiling is being painted, some inadvertent dripping of the paint'occurs. The floor can be quite readily protected by a drop cloth; however, protecting the conventional baseboard requires more elaborate measures such as masking. Elaborate or timeconsuming methods are frequently ignored, and the same is ture in painting. Ithas heretofore been proposed to provide apparatus for holding a drop cloth adjacent the wall, as shown in US Pat. No. 3,380,435, issued Apr. 30, 1968 to Emil J: Wagner. More simplified, yet more effective, apparatus is desirable.

SUMMARY The present invention relates generally to paint shields and more particularly to a drop cloth holder.

To protect structures such as baseboards against the inadvertent application of paint thereto, it is the general object of this invention to provide a drop cloth holder which can be removably applied to hold a drop cloth in position to protect suchstructures during a painting operation.

More particularly, it is an object of the invention to provide a drop cloth holder which constitutes a simple structure and one which can be easily applied to protect a baseboard or other surface from the unwanted application of paint.

It is another object of'the invention to provide a holder which can releasably support a drop cloth, and which can be readily installed or removed.

Yet another object is to provide a drop cloth holder which will hold a drop cloth tightly against a wall but will not damage the drop cloth.

These, and other objects and advantages of the present invention, will become apparent as the same becomes better understood from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the present invention with both the drop cloth and baseboard illustrated in phantom lines;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken generally along line 2-2 of FIG. 1, and

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the drop cloth holder of the present invention illustrating its shape prior to insertion between a baseboard and a wall.

DESCRIPTION Reference is now made more particularly to the drawings which illustrate the best presently known mode of carrying out the invention and wherein similar reference characters indicate the same parts throughout the several views.

With initial reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional baseboard B at the lower extremity of the wall section W is illustrated to provide an exemplary locus for effective description of the present invention. A drop cloth holder, designated by the numeral 10, is illustrated in operative position holding a drop cloth 12 snugly against the wall W above the baseboard B to protect the latter from the inadvertent application of paint thereto when the wall, or the ceiling above it, is

being painted. While any flexible drop cloth may be utilized with the present invention, the holder'l0 is particularly useful for holding the thin, plastic sheets which are sold in paint stores and the like but which are very difficult to hold in position since they are so light weight.

FIG. 3 shows the holder 10 in an inoperative position and illustrates the shape prior to insertion between the wall and baseboard. As illustrated, the holder 10 has what'may be termed an inverted .l-shape. The holder includes a first leg 21, a longer second leg 22, and an intermediate portion 23 whichinterconnects the upper ends of the two legs and has a shape in the form a smooth reverse curve. The first leg 21 includes an upper portion 25 and a lower portion 26 which extends downwardly and outwardly in a direction away from the second leg 22 for a purpose which will hereafter be explained; Advantageously, the entire holder is formed of spring steel having a thickness of about 20/ l 000 inch and a width of inch. The second leg 22 is arched between its upper and lower ends in a direction toward the first leg 21 as shown in FIG. 3. In the embodiment illustrated, rise of the arch of the second leg 22 is about /2 inch and the second leg is divided into an upper portion 32'and a lower portion 33 which are not colinear. In this manner, the second leg comprises a leaf spring whose function will hereafter be explained. The second leg has a lower end 38 which is adapted for slipping between the wall and the baseboard. For this purpose, the lower end 38 may be slightly wedge-shaped or have rounded corners to facilitate insertion between the wall and baseboard.

Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 2, the drop cloth holder 10 is shown in operative position. As indicated above, this position is achieved by slipping the lower end 38'of second leg 22 between the baseboard B and the wall W. This operation tends to flatten the secondleg 22 thereby tensioning that leg so that it resiliently urges its upper end toward the wall. This spring action of the second leg 22 allows the holder above the baseboard to be pulled outwardly so that the drop cloth 12 may be inserted between the upper, portion 32 of the second leg 22 and the wall W. This can be achieved by slipping the fingers behind the first leg 21 or by grasping thefinger grip portion 26 and pulling the upper end of the second leg 22 away from the wall. After insertion of the drop cloth, one may release the holder and the spring action of the second leg will tightly hold the drop cloth against the wall W. After the drop cloth has been installed in the manner illustrated and described, the painting of the wall W, or of the ceiling thereabove, can proceed without fear of any paint being dripped or otherwise applied to the baseboard B or the adjacent floor- While a preferred embodiment of the invention has herein been illustrated and described, this has been done by way of illustration and not limitation, and the invention should not be limited except as required by the scope of the appended claims.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

l. A drop cloth holder adapted for holding a flexible drop cloth contiguous to a wall above a baseboard or the like, including:

a first leg having upper and lower ends;

a second leg having upper and lower ends;

means interconnecting the upper ends of said legs;

the second leg comprising a leaf spring which, between said upper and lower ends, is arched in a direction toward the first leg, is longer than the first leg and they are interconnected to form generally an inverted J-shape;

the lower end of the second leg adapted for slipping between the wall and the baseboard or the like and thereby at least partially flattening the leaf spring so that it is tensioned and resiliently urges the upper end of the second leg toward the wall; and

the first leg having a downwardly and outwardly extending section at the lower end thereof extending outwardly in a direction away from the second leg smooth reverse curve. 

1. A drop cloth holder adapted for holding a flexible drop cloth contiguous to a wall above a baseboard or the like, including: a first leg having upper and lower ends; a second leg having upper and lower ends; means interconnecting the upper ends of said legs; the second leg comprising a leaf spring which, between said upper and lower ends, is arched in a direction toward the first leg, is longer than the first leg and they are interconnected to form generally an inverted J-shape; the lower end of the second leg adapted for slipping between the wall and the baseboard or the like and thereby at least partially flattening the leaf spring so that it is tensioned and resiliently urges the upper end of the second leg toward the wall; and the first leg having a downwardly and outwardly extending section at the lower end thereof extending outwardly in a direction away from the second leg to provide a finger grip portion for pulling the upper end of the second leg away from the wall so that the flexible drop cloth may be inserted therebetween.
 2. A drop cloth holder as set forth in claim 1 wherein the second leg is formed of spring steel of rectangular cross-section and having a thickness of about 20/1000 inch.
 3. A drop cloth holder as set forth in claim 1 wherein the entire holder is formed of spring steel, and the means interconnecting the legs is in the shape of a smooth reverse curve. 